Plaid Leader calls out Labour leadership contender for his misleading language on refugees

Plaid Leader calls out Labour leadership contender for his misleading language on refugees

Posted
on August 26 2016, 9:36 PM

Plaid Cymru Leader Leanne Wood has criticised Labour leadership hopeful Owen Smith MP for misleading his audience and of pandering to people's fears in the debate over refugees in the UK.

The New Statesman reported earlier this week that Mr Smith had claimed that there was "a significant number" of people fleeing the Middle East arriving in his local area in south Wales.

Figures published yesterday (August 25th) showed that the figure for Rhondda Cynon Taf Council was in fact 18 refugees. Up until then, the local authority had accepted zero.

Plaid Cymru Leader Leanne Wood said:

"The refugee debate to date has been driven by scaremongering and misinformation.‎"To hear one of the contenders for Labour's leadership, a potential Labour leader, joining in by misleading is pandering to people's fears on this question and is concerning.

"Official figures show that Rhondda Cynon Taf Council has accepted 18 refugees fleeing from war-torn Syria to the area, but the MP for Pontypridd claims there are "significant numbers" of people from the Middle East across the south of Wales.‎"Misleading comments of this nature have a damaging effect on our communities. I condemn politicians from all parties who use inflammatory rhetoric which seeks to divide and pander to politics of the far right.

"What we hear from extremists in UKIP should not become the language of mainstream politics."